Hello Indianapolis Fashionistas,
As I had mentioned before — I am not going to give you tips on what to buy people for Christmas — beyond my gift certificates, LOL!! Tongue in cheek — what I’d like to talk about in this blog is a philosophy about how you buy — a principle that you can think about all year as you buy clothes for yourself and even gift them to others.
I did mention in another blog to be careful about “gifting” clothes to loved ones unless you can totally nail their size and style, or have had previous success in buying for others. Accessories — albeit Winter, cozy accessories — are always a good idea for gifting. Who doesn’t love a cashmere scarf or leather gloves lived in leopard? Or a cozy wool scarf? It’s an easy gift but usually much appreciated.
That being said — now more about my styling philosophy. I have to function in the world we live in right now — and that is a world full of enormous buying options and cheap clothing available more than ever before. Just like cable television, we now have a myriad of buying options for our clothes–online, subscription boxes, consignment, clothing rental and retail stores from high-end to very inexpensive. That doesn’t make the job an easier, however.
I can tell you the clients I work with are often confused and overwhelmed with all the online options as well as what is in the stores. Part of the problem is that sizing is so different and varies from store to store and medium — online versus the box store. Did you know that online sizing is slightly larger than what you find in the store — that is intentional to eliminate the amount of clothing that is returned due to incorrect size and fit.
So with all the options out there — I’d like you to rethink the way you buy if you fall into these categories — you buy often and buy cheap items. Or you buy often and buy online and find that you are not happy with the clothing.
As an Indianapolis Personal Stylist I know — we don’t have unlimited budgets when it comes to buying our clothes. Yes, even I have limitations on what I spend on my personal wardrobe. What I do know is — you get what you pay for. So please remember that.
Case in point — nearly a year ago I travelled to Israel with our church group. There were several ladies in that group and we talked about what what we bought and compared purchases. I bought some jewelry — fine jewelry — and one scarf — yes just one. I was buying it for myself and not for others. It was beautiful, but it was not the cheapest price. I had several street vendors selling scarves, and on the last day of our trip there was a vendor selling 5 scarves for $25. This was a great purchase for one of the guys on our trip who wanted to buy something for his mom and sisters — isn’t that sweet? (He’s off the market now, ladies!1)
I did not succumb to this purchase and bought one beautiful scarf for $35. I wear it constantly and often see some ladies from our trip to say — Beth I should have bought just one scarf, too. I would have worn it more.
So my main idea — this next year, in 2018, buy less, but buy better quality clothes you will love and that last. It’s always a good investment.
If you are not sure what you are spending, keep track of your spending in just one month. I think you will be amazed at what you are spending on many items — you could have bought less and used it more.
Keep it sassy, Indy!
Beth Divine, Indianapolis Personal Stylist
